Protective cover for fruit-crates.



S. P. BUNKER.

PROTECTIVE COVER FOR FRUIT CRATES.

APPLICATION FILED JULYZO. T916- Patented Jan. 23,1917.

A TTORNHS earn vr PRQTECTIVE CGVER FOB FRUIT-CRATES.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented J an. 23, 1917.

Application filed July 20, 1916. Serial No. 110,323.

dent

2*. El SSH ll vented a new and Improved Protective Cover for Fruit-Crates, of which the following is a full, clear, and exact description.

This invention relates to shipping crates for peaches, tomatoes and other fruits and vegetables, and it has to deal particularly with the crate top.

it the present time the tops of crates are lined on the under side with a cushion of paper-covered excelsior for the purpose of preventing injury to the contents of the tiers of boxes within the crate. Actual experience demonstrates that this cushion is not effective in preventing mashing or bruising the peaches, tomatoes or the like, especially in the top tier boxes. The top of the crate is mace of thin wood and is easily bowed downwardly when the weight of any object is placed on the top. In handling promiscuous express matter, boxes, bags, barrels, etc, are often piled on a crate of fruit or vegetables, and as a result much damage is done to the contents of the crate.

* in such a case the cushion of excelsior is almost useless.

The object of the present invention is to overcome this drawback to the present crate covers and to provide a protective device which will sustain considerable weight without the contents of the crate being in any way injured, this orotective device being in the form of strips of wood extendinglongitudinally of the cover or top and fastened to short cross pieces which are in turn fastened to the ends or heads of the crate, whereby the cross pieces support the longitudinal pieces a suitable distance above the top, so that the slight sagging of the longitudinal pieces under heavy weights will not press interfere with the piling of crates one on top of another with a stability possible with crates in common use.

For a more complete understanding of the invention reference is to be had to the following description and claims taken in connection with the accompanying drawing, in which similar reference characters indicate corresponding parts in all the views, and in which- Figure l is a perspective view of a filled crate with the protective cover applied to the top thereof; Fig. 2 is a side view of the upper portion of a filled crate with the top in place and the protective cover about to be nailed down; Fig. 3 is a perspective view of "he cover before being applied; and Fig. lis a perspective view of a combined crate top and protective device.

Referring to the drawing, A designates a crate of ordinary construction which is closed by a top 1 which is a thin plate of wood reinforced by transverse strips 2. The top 1 is yieldable so that it is free to bulge up at the center, as shown in Fig. 2, when the peaches, tomatoes or the like in the boxes 3 are of large size.

To prevent the top from being pressed down by the weight of objects a protective device or cover C is employed. This consists of longitudinal strips 3 of wood about one-half by three inches in cross-section and as long as the crate, and the ends of these strips are secured by nails l to cross pieces 5 which are about an inch square in crosssection and as long as the crate is wide. These cross pieces lie over the ends or heads of the crate and are fastened to the tops of the ends or heads by the nails 4. These cross pieces support the strips 3 a suitable height above the top 1, so that the slight sagging of the pieces 3 under the weight of objects that might be piled on the crate will not press the top 1 down against the contents of the crate. The outer edges 6 of the strias 3 are set in an inch or so from the sides of the crate so that when a rope is tied around the middle of the crate the rope will engage the top 1 and sides of the crate at the points 7 and 8, respectively, and prevent the top and sides being sprung apart to surreptitiously take out any of the contents. The strips 3 and cross pieces 5 may be supplied to the crate in loose form and nailed together, as shown in Fig. 3, before being applied to the crate. After the crate is filled and the top 1 is nailed down, the protective device or cover C, F1g. 3, is placed on the crate, as shown in Fig. 2,

and the nails 4 driven home; but the protective device consisting of the strips 3 and cross pieces 5 can be nailed directly to the loose top 1", as shown in Fig. 4. and when the crate is filled, the top and protective device as a unit are nailed to the crate.

From the foregoing description taken in connection with the accompanying drawing, the advantages of the construction and method of operation will be readily understood by those skilled in the art to which the invention appertains, and while I have described the principle of operation, together witli the device which I now consider to be the best embodiment thereof, I desire to have it understood that the device shown is merely illustrative and that such changes may be made when desired as fall within the scope of the appended claims.

*iaving thus described my invention, I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent:

1. The combination of a crate body having end walls of such thickness that fasteners can be driven down ard-1y in the top edges thereof, and a top for the crate of such. length as to extend from one end wall to the other and lie directly on the top edges thereof, with a protective device comprising cross pieces disposed on the upper surface of the crate top at the ends thereof, longitudinal strips disposedon top of the cross pieces, and fasteners passing through the. strips and cross pieces and through the crate top and driven into the end walls of the crate body.

2. The combination of a crate body having end walls of such thickness that fasteners can be driven downwardly in the top edges thereof, and a top for the crate of such length as to extend from one end Wall to the other and lie directly on the'top edges thereof, vith a protective device comprising cross pieces disposed on the upper surface of the crate top at the ends thereof, longif .inal strips disposed on top of the cross pieces and secured thereto, and fasteners securing the cross pieces to the crate top and to the end walls of the crate body and clamping the crate top between the cross pieces and said end walls.

8. A new article of manufacture comprisinga crate top, cross-pieces fastened to the upper surface of the top and disposed the end edges thereof, and longitudinal strips having their ends bearing on the top of the cross pieces and fastened thereto, the. outer. side edges of the said strips being disposed inwardly from the side edges of the said crate top.

st. A new article of manufacture comprising a crate top and a protective device consisting of cross pieces fastened to the top surface of the crate top at the ends thereof, and longitudinal strips fastened to the. top. sides of the cross pieces and spaced by such cross pieces from the crate top, said longitudinal strips and crate top being of substantially the same length, whereby the cross pieces lie wholly between the crate top and: strips.

SHE RMAN P; BUNKER.

Games of, this. patent may be obtained for fi-ve cents eachi by addressing the Commissioner of Patents,

Washington, D. 6;, 

